Q1) What changes have you seen in sustainable home design in the last decade?
Q2) What products do you find to be the most eco-friendly and energy-saving?
Q3) What “green” features do you find essential in the kitchen? What energy savings trends do you see in the home appliances industry?
Q4.) How about manufacturing? Does how a manufacturer manages its environmental impact matter in your decisions? How are companies with energy saving appliances and environmentally friendly practices recognized? Do you look for this information? Where?
Q5.) How can water be saved in the kitchen? Please share good design tips, habits and products that save water.
Q6.) What about the bathroom? How can you save water in the bathroom?
Q7.) In what other ways can you save this vital resource? #water
1.) There are many ways to design with wellness in mind, from open-concept kitchens that encourage family interaction and food prep to proper lighting. What does the wellness trend mean to you?
2.) Consumers are becoming more conscious of not just their own health, but the health of the planet. Using sustainable building materials is more prevalent than ever before. How do you incorporate sustainable materials/elements into your designs?
3.) Your kitchen should serve as a retreat, not a pressure cooker. What tips do you have for streamlining design to avoid clutter and promote minimalism?
4.) What about for the bathroom? Share your favorite tips to stay organized and clutter free.
5.) An ideal Wellness Kitchen should be easy to maintain, user friendly for all ages and logically planned. Share your favorite Wellness Kitchen design and tell us why you love it.
6.) What about for the bathroom? Share your favorite Wellness Bathroom design ideas!
7.) How can the shower promote wellness?
8.) What wellness related products and ideas did you discover at KBIS?
Join this Twitter conversation
on Wednesday February 26
from 2 to 3pm eastern
by adding #KBtribechat to your tweets!
Here’s where you can read the transcript for this KBtribechat.
Q1.) In the design process, what details do you focus on when designing with health and safety in mind? Please share solutions you like!
Healthy material choices not only affect indoor air quality but it’s important to know how they affect the environment and if they are made from renewal resources .
Q2.) Are your clients asking for sustainable (healthy for the earth) and healthy products and design choices? Do these healthy building materials and design choices cost more?
Q3.) How can technology help us address health and safety concerns in the kitchen? What about in bathrooms?
Q4.) What features can help the end user make healthy choices in the kitchen?
Q5.) What features can offer healthful benefits in the bathroom?
Q6.) Do you take ergonomic principles into consideration when designing kitchens or bathrooms? Does this include the reasoning behind cabinet pull-outs and other cabinet features? What about appliance considerations?
Q7.) In what ways can we plan for client safety in the kitchen and bath spaces we design? Please share important tips for designing spaces that work for all stages of life.
The reduction of clutter in our homes has not only been shown to reduce stress but simplification is a current design trend. How does this apply to designing healthy kitchens and bathrooms?
Q8.) What are your go to design tips for reducing clutter in kitchens?
Q9.) What are your go to design tips for reducing clutter in bathrooms?
Share pictures of designs and ideas you like!
Join this Twitter Chat conversation
on Wednesday, May 8
from 2 to 3pm eastern time
by adding #KBtribechat to your tweets!
Here’s a link to read the transcript for this KBtribechat.
Whirlpool Corporation is inviting kitchen and bath professionals to a special Earth Day-themed #KBTribeChat about sustainability in our industry.
With the growing demand for greater sustainability from consumers, it’s more important than ever for building and design professionals to incorporate eco-friendly and energy-efficient products and features into their projects.
For example, a new, global survey from Whirlpool Corporation showed that consumers favor appliances that help them decrease their environmental footprint:
Three in four respondents (74%) are interested in smart appliance features that reduce food waste
Three in four respondents (75%) are interested in smart appliance features that manage water usage
Two in three respondents (64%) say it’s important that their appliances help save on electricity costs
Across its portfolio of brands, Whirlpool Corporation offers high-performing appliances that conserve the earth’s resources and help homeowners do the same. The company continually monitors the environmental effects of its business, not only by creating many new and innovative products that consume less water and energy, but also by improving its manufacturing and distribution processes, and using materials that minimize the impact on the planet.
Join us at 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 24 as we discuss sustainability in the kitchen and bath industry.
Here are our chat questions:
1. What home building and design trends have helped make homes more sustainable?
2. What products do you find to be most eco-friendly and energy-saving for the kitchen?
3. Are you seeing a demand for sustainable laundry appliances? Explain.
4. How can smart/connected products help homeowners save energy and water?
5. How are you incorporating environmentally-driven solutions into your projects?
This photo provided by Whirlpool shows the Whirlpool Duet Front Load ENERGY STAR laundry pair, including the HybridCare Dryer, in a laundry room. For the first time in six years, Energy Star certification, a widely respected seal of approval for energy efficiency, has been expanded to include a new major household appliance. Dryers, perhaps the last of the major household appliances to be included in the Environmental Protection Agencys program, will be available in 45 Energy Star models throughout the country starting Presidents Day weekend, according to the EPA. (AP Photo/Whirlpool)
Join this Twitter Chat Conversation
on Wednesday, April 24
from 2 to 3pm eastern time
by adding #KBtribechat to your tweets!
Here is a link to read the transcript for this KBtribechat.
The desire to live healthily and our growing knowledge of how daily habits affect wellbeing are major influences on kitchen design today–and for good reason. After all, the kitchen is the heart of the home and should further our healthy lifestyle, not hinder it. That’s where the Wellness Kitchen comes in.
The Wellness Kitchen trend extends beyond just a healthy diet. It is about using advancements in technology and design to foster healthier lifestyles for our bodies, our minds and our planet. An ideal Wellness Kitchen doesn’t just feed the mind and soul with its functional, visually satisfying designs. It also encourages social interactions and environmentally friendly lifestyles.
From residential remodeling to commercial development, there is a growing niche for wellness-focused design, creating an opportunity for designers, contractors, retailers, manufacturers and other industry professionals to contribute to a better, healthier world.
At Caesarstone, we strive to create a kitchen counter culture that contributes to and fosters healthier lifestyles, from the manufacturing plant all the way to the home. Now we want to hear the role health and wellness plays in your work!
OUR KBtribechat QUESTIONS:
1.) From putting healthy food on public display to open-concept kitchens that encourage family interaction and food prep, there are all kinds of ways to design with wellness in mind. What does the Wellness Kitchen trend mean to you?
2.) Consumers are becoming more conscious of not just their own health, but the health of the planet. Using sustainable, green building materials is more prevalent than ever before. How do you incorporate sustainable materials/elements into your designs?
3.) Your kitchen should serve as a retreat, not a pressure cooker. What tips do you have for streamlining design to avoid clutter and promote minimalism?
4.) An ideal Wellness Kitchen should be easy to maintain, user friendly for all ages and logically planned. Share your favorite Wellness Kitchen design and tell us why you love it.
5.) Caesarstone partnered with Dan Brunn Architecture & other green companies to create a house of the future. If you were designing a sustainable house, which materials would you use? Create your own moodboard and share: http://www.caesarstonesocial.com/contest/contest.html
This week we will be pinning to our Earth Day group pinterest board, a compilation of favorite sustainable and green designs and products. Let us know if you’d like to be added to the board!
Our KBtribechat questions:
1.) What eco/green/sustainable building tips do you suggest for kitchens and baths?
2.) How can we make kitchens and bathrooms more energy efficient?
3.) What remodeling choices affect indoor air quality? Please share good solutions.
4.) What user habits in the kitchen or bath can help with environmental responsibility?
5.) What eco-friendly products are on your list which can reduce the impact of construction on the environment?
Material Health is a hot topic in commercial design, as the recent increase in third-party labels, assessments, and certifications indicate. How will trends and practices focused on material health shape residential design, if at all?
1. Do your clients raise health concerns regarding material choices? What are they?
2. What are some misconceptions in the design community about material impact on human health?
3.What are your go-to sources for sustainable products?
4. What certifications or labels do you look for when selecting sustainable products?
5. What does the future of healthy materials look like for the kitchen and bath industry?
About Our Sponsor
Made from recycled glass, cement, and non-toxic pigments, IceStone is a sustainable choice for kitchen countertops, bathroom vanities, cash wrap areas, and other common surface applications. IceStone is available in full, half, and vanity sizes. IceStone’s products and practices have garnered several awards and certifications, including Cradle to Cradle Certification.
Every IceStone slab is crafted in Brooklyn, NY; IceStone products are available nationwide and in Canada. www.icestoneusa.com facebook.com/IceStoneSurfaces twitter.com/IceStoneLLC Instagram.com/icestonellc pinterest.com/icestone
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